After what seemed like an eternity, but also just a fleeting moment, the all-encompassing blue dimmed. And once again, Ed was able to move. He looked to his side, quickly locking onto Ulfric before the crowd could start moving, and he would lose him.

“Follow me.” Ulfric said his first words since meeting Ed. His voice was rough and grating, as if he was chewing on gravel as he spoke.

Fitting. Ed followed him out of the crowded square, through the busy streets until it began to quiet down. Keeping one eye out while not losing track of Ulric, Ed studied the city around him.

The buildings were among some of the most lavish and extravagant places he had ever seen. Excluding the Royal palace, the place seemed far richer than anything he had seen in Pride. But at the same time, it all felt noisy and chaotic. There wasn’t a single bit of uniformity on the street. Each building and person seemed to be fighting for attention, causing the place to look garish and outrageous. Nothing like the clean and tasteful city planning of Pride.

It’s like everyone’s trying to show how much better they are than everyone else. Looking further down the street, Ed watched as a building collapsed from a fight between two hulking giants. People dashed in and out between the feet of the giants, carrying precious jewellery and gold that they ransacked from the destroyed building.

Unlike what he had seen in Pride City, the fighters didn’t seem to care at all about other people’s property. A long trail of destroyed buildings cut across the street, as hordes of people stole everything of value from the wreckages to boost their own house.

The destruction only came to a stop when one of the giants fell to their knees. A contract appeared in front of them, floating in the air as they indignantly signed away their soul to the Victor.

The giants disappeared, and once everything had been taken away, the streets returned to normal. People walked away satisfied with their new hauls, tossing their gains inside their homes. Those who were unlucky enough to see their houses destroyed picked themselves up with a sigh. Some began rebuilding, while others walked away to start anew somewhere else.

Life went on, just like it had countless times before. People’s worth rose and fell, and does who were at the bottom did everything they could to claw their way back up, if only for the satisfaction of having what others did not. Some people were not like this, but after thousands of years, sinners learned to just roll with the punches and follow the lead of the natural born denizens of Hell.

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When they finally escaped the crowded streets, they continued walking for a little while more before Ulric brought Ed into a dim alley. The shadows seemed darker and more intense here, as if they were harbouring an ancient evil.

“Glad to see you could make it.” A voice called out from the darkness. A figure walked through the shadows, coming to stand in front of Ed and Ulric. He was a ghostly pale man wearing black, modern clothes. He was clad head to toe in black clothes, with his face visible beneath the black hoodie. The clothes clung tightly to his body, faintly showing off his sleek and toned physique.

The man seemed familiar with Ulric’s silence, so turned to Ed. “Who are you?”

“I’m Ed. Princess Elaine sent me.” Ed said.

Noting Ulric’s silence, the man nodded and put his hand out towards Ed. “The name’s Draven. It’s nice to have someone to talk to for once.”

Ulric didn’t seem at all offended by that remark, despite how often they work together.

A beast jumped out of the shadows, bounding towards the group, startling Ed, who readied himself for a fight. The beast came to a stop at Draven’s feet, its tail wagging playfully.

“Good timing, it seems we’ve found our chance. Follow me.” Said Draven, who followed the beast through the alley and into another street. The beast hopped stealthily through the shadows, while Draven took his time walking down the street, allowing Ed and Ulric to keep up with him.

“The target’s a pretty paranoid guy.” Draven explained. “The second he found out his attack failed; he went into hiding. It would take far too long to search the entire city to try and track him down, but it’s much easier to find his men. I’ve had my hounds scouring the city, and they’ve just locked onto someone who might know where Christophe is. We’re on our way to him now.”

Ulric nodded as they all casually made their way down the street.

“Who is he?” Ed asked.

“One of Christophe’s men. His second in command in fact. He’s been running around the city, making sure the rest of the gang has either fled or hidden themselves somewhere in the city. It’s been difficult, the guy’s slippery, but I’ve managed to track him down.”

The group continued on in silence, following behind the beast as it led them to the man. Turning around a corner, the beast came to a stop in the shadows outside a bookstore. The group kept walking, none of them even so much as looked at the bookstore, as they pretended to be a group of ordinary passersby.

Through their own methods, they each studied the bookstore. Draven sensed the inside through his shadows, while Ed turned a minute fraction of his body into thread, feeling the vibrations of the world around him.

Thankfully, the street was quiet, or he would have been completely overwhelmed by the information. But he still struggled to maintain his composure for more than a few moments. He couldn’t even sense the inside of the bookstore before he was forced to give up. Fuck, I can’t do this. I’d have to get inside the bookstore before I can search for anything. I’m barely even sensing a fraction of what I’m capable of, and my brain already feels like it’s turned to mush. If only I had better control of my senses, either it’s all or nothing with my threads. That’s something I need to work on.